Sophos Anti-Virus Interface (SAVI) Datasheet

SAVI (Sophos Anti-Virus Interface)

SAVI (Sophos Anti-Virus Interface) provides a powerful way to build Sophos's virus detection into any application. It allows Internet Service Providers (ISPs) and Application Service Providers (ASPs) to offer integrated protection to their clients and is used by software vendors and OEMs to add the value of virus protection to their product lines.

Typically used with gateway or firewall software, SAVI offers developers fast-track integration while at the same time satisfying the requirement of high-bandwidth environments for minimal performance overhead. Through its high-performance channel into the Sophos virus engine, SAVI provides detection of all virus types. It also incorporates disinfection and provides comprehensive information when a virus is found.

How it works

SAVI is implemented as a COM-compliant DLL on Windows NT, and as shared libraries on other platforms. It requires only one copy of the virus information database to service all requests and does away with the frequent loading and reinitialisation required by command-line based scanners. This provides considerable improvement in performance.

SAVI is installed as part of Sophos Anti-Virus. Customers who use SAVI-compliant products should purchase a SAVI licence.

Features

Improves performance significantly over traditional command line virus scanners.
Supports a disinfection interface.
Allows ISPs, ASPs to integrate with Sophos Anti-Virus's virus detection technology.
Enables third-party applications to build Sophos virus detection into their solutions.
Interfaces with compliant firewall, gateway and backup applications to monitor email, Internet downloads and FTP downloads.
Uses a single, multi-threading copy of the virus detection engine to process all requests.
Ensures transparent update of all SAVI clients when Sophos Anti-Virus is updated.
Integrates with Sophos Anti-Virus under Windows NT/2000/XP, Unix, Linux and OpenVMS.

Technical details

Product name	SAVI (Sophos Anti-Virus Interface).
Function	API to virus detection engine.
Mode of operation	Windows: Dynamic Link Library (DLL) using Microsoft's Component Object Model (COM). Unix, Linux, OpenVMS: shared library.
Using the interface	Once Sophos Anti-Virus is installed, third-party applications can call the SAVI DLL or shared library.
Updates	Continuous updates are available via the Sophos website for new viruses detected in the wild. In addition, full monthly updates are available for download. Sophos also sends full updates on CD to all customers at the beginning of each month.
Virus alerts	Options depend on third-party product.
System requirements	Windows NT/2000/XP; Unix; Linux; OpenVMS.
Memory requirement	Memory constraints are eliminated through use of a single multi-threading copy of the virus database to process all requests.

Documentation

Sophos Anti-Virus for Windows NT/2000 - Installation Guide: SAVI on Windows NT or 2000 [PDF 625k]